Letter from DC

Letter from DC takes a substantive – and often lighthearted – look at politics and public policy that digs deeper than sound bites and talking point manifestos. The insider perspective tracks the pressing topics of the day coming from Congress, the executive branch and its agencies, and the Courts and the means in which they are deliberated. Sometimes with an edge, sometimes with humor, Letter from DC provides a barroom understanding of the issues facing Washington D.C. and those it represents.

Maybe Washington is a cesspool of political sludge, worthy of the criticism made by those most responsible for creating it. But sharing a fine lager at many a Capitol Hill bar demonstrated that D.C. is doing just fine, thank you very much. It's all those people in Washington that are the problem.

The holiday parties are still occurring, yet they have become just as partisan as the city's noxious climate, extending the political divide between the two factions to simple acts of holiday season socializing.

The people, by an unprecedented margin, want no part of having their wireless phones inundated by robo-calls and veiled sales pitches. The "People's House," on the other hand, seek to rationalize a blatant industry grab. Be vigilant with that iPhone...

This prostrate-driven game of chicken also introduced an unprecedented tactic: the forceful and overt advocacy on behalf of its corporate benefactor by its talent, mainly "Sons of Anarchy" creator Kurt Sutter.

The wireless industry’s approach is in stark contrast to the banking industry, which is fighting tooth-and-nail against regulation of an industry that nearly self-imploded save for government intervention and billions in taxpayer support, while at the same time its coffers swell.

John Kennedy once infamously described Washington a perfect combination of “northern charm and southern efficiency.” Yet, as the last week has demonstrated, perhaps DC is more appropriately a combination of international parochialism and local sophistication .

“Who was that guy? And why the reaction?” asked DCPS administrators, Chancellor staff, and their philanthropic partners at the 2nd Annual “Standing Ovation” for DCPS’ 663 “Highly Effective” teachers held at the Kennedy Center this past week. “Mr. Mayor,...

One industry that should enjoy a bit of economic stimulus is ark builders. Washington D.C. and its Susquehanna Valley neighbors to the North have been absolutely pummeled by constant, heavy rain this past week to the tune of more...

The region has experienced a constant dress-rehearsal for the potential catastrophic event we are constantly warned about since 9/11. But once again we’re reminded: if something really goes down, we’re toast.

It’s the sad tale that could be found in any hamlet in North America, or Europe for that matter, of an accomplished and somewhat eccentric woman whose need for companionship overruled her good sense, and ultimately, might have led to Viola Drath's death.

Most in Congress have thankfully left Washington for their home states and districts to “engage their constituents” (read: fundraise), taking with them the hot and oppressive air of the debt ceiling fight with them. There has to be a corollary...

In its 8th consecutive effort to rebut the conventional wisdom that there are no hotties in our nation’s capital, DC political trade The Hill published its “50 Most Beautiful People” feature. It offers a bit of a glimpse on why the nation is in the state in which it finds itself.

It was one of the finest and most honorable acts by the U.S. Senate in recent memory: to affirm one’s professional and legal credentials without regard to sexuality and with no drama. It also affirmed that body’s intentional mission to be the more deliberative, and less reactionary, of Congress’ two chambers.

You literally can see the proverbial haze and heat lightning engulfing the U.S. Capitol as extremists play chicken over the extension of the country's debt ceiling to register their displeasure over a changing country.

"If it was just one candidate, we could write it off," said a senior Republican strategist committed to defeating President Barack Obama. "But this undisciplined goofiness is starting to make us look the gang that can't shoot straight."

Washington's K Street crew has been giddy with the recent spate of sex scandals facing many of the political class' high-profile figures. Georgetown's Café Milano is abuzz with the sexual assault charges against the DC-based IMF director Dominique Strauss-Kahn;...